Friday, December 07, 2007

The Insider's Scoop on WH Cheng....

During yesterday's appearance, WH Cheng topped out at 91 mph. His fb sat typically in the 85 -87 mph range. Cheng is allegedly being "advised" by agent Don Nomura & his KDN Sports Agency. Nomura, whose known for representing past star NPB clients Hideo Nomo and Hideki Irabu, is also rumored to charge an outlandish 15-25% commission in Taiwan - most sports agencies charge ~ 5-8% commission. Nomura is currently representing one Taiwanese player - Si-Yo Wu of the Chiba Lotte Marines. *Edited

Per WH Cheng's coach, Nomura told Cheng that the Cubs had an $800 K offer for Cheng. If that offer is true, that would be shocking to me. The last HS junior to sign with a MLB club was RHP Yao-Wen Chang - and he had a 93 mph fb as well as a projectable 6'3" frame. Chang was reported to have received ~ $400 K bonus. Despite being only a HS junior, Cheng will have to fight the stigma that Chih-Lung Huang faced - the owner of a low 90's fb whose projectability is questionable because of his 5'9" stature.

Speaking of the Cubs, I dug up this pic (& Chinese article) of Cubs minor leaguer Chih-Hsiang Wen.